The Dark Knight, Son of Krypton
by badliar 2312
Summary: The ship that carried the infant Kal-El did not land on the Kents' farm in Smallville, Kansas. Instead, it landed on the backyard of Wayne Manor, north of Gotham City. Inspired by Superman: Speeding Bullets by J.M. DeMatteis and Eduardo Barreto.
1. Chapter 1

So this is a little something that I did to unclog my mind for a bit. Something a bit different than my other fanfics, but the premise stuck in my mind and I just had to get it out.

To my usual readers who's reading this, I apologize for not updating anything for three months. I've been having a lot of things at my plate at the moment and I just couldn't find much free time to write...

Still, I hope you'll enjoy reading this one.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Superman, nor Batman. This should be obvious. DC Comics owns them. And they are created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster along with Bill Finger and Bob Kane for the two pair's respective characters.

* * *

**Same Name. Different Identity.**

* * *

In New Jersey, Briston Township, Crest Hill, north of a sprawling metropolis, stood a large manor surrounded in acres of green hills.

This manor is owned by an exceedingly wealthy couple, named Thomas and Martha Wayne, a famed surgeon and a wealthy socialite who shared the proclivity of giving a large part of their wealth to make the world a better place.

The couple, who have been happily married for a few years now, lived with their loyal and competent butler, Alfred Pennyworth. Alfred was not a simple butler. Before he became a butler for the Wayne family, he was a medic soldier who served in many conflicts around the world. He even briefly served as an SAS Commando before he decided to retire.

Out of his father's dying wish, Alfred accepted the request of Thomas Wayne to serve their family. And it had been a few years now since he first arrived in Wayne Manor after becoming the family's butler.

In these past few years, Alfred had become familiar with the couple's plight. The husband and wife wanted a child, just like any other parents. However, despite this, she's faced with the simple but painful fact: Her body will not allow a child to grow in her womb.

Her womb was inhospitable for a fetus to grow. Barren. To put it succinctly, she could never bear a child, let alone give birth to them.

Alfred knew how devastated she became when she was given the terrible news. Thomas spent days and nights consoling her, telling her that it's going to be okay and that he did not love her less because of this. But there was no other response that she could use as she's swallowed in her grief. She could only weep.

Though that phase was over, she now spent most of her time in silence. And usually, she could be found gazing to nothing in particular. With empty eyes that held no mirth nor vigor.

Thomas had been advising her that adoption was an option for them. Martha, though she welcomed the idea somewhat, was still hesitant. Only time would be able to heal that scar, and it would be quite a while before she could be strong enough to adopt a child in place of one that she simply could not have with Thomas.

It was now afternoon, Thomas had left to work at the hospital in the city while Alfred was attending to Martha.

She sat on the terrace on the back of the mansion that overlooked the green field that they own, seemingly staring at the horizon. Though Alfred knew that her gaze was not focused at anything in particular and that her mind was elsewhere.

"Would you like some tea ma'am? Perhaps a light snack?" Alfred asked of her.

She turned to Alfred, and though she smiled, it was painfully clear that she's not genuinely happy, "No thank you Alfred. I'm fine."

Alfred nodded before he straightened himself up, went silent, and remain in that pose, ready to be ordered.

"Alfred?" Martha began after a few minutes of silence.

"Yes ma'am?"

"...Is it wrong of me to think that the idea of adopting a child feels like a betrayal?" she asked her butler out of the blue, "I know I will never be able to... conceive a child. My own child." she choked on her words at this, "And this is the only available option, given my... condition. But... why... why do I feel like I will be betraying my future child if I choose to adopt?"

Her lips quivered, tears began to gather in her eyes, Martha Wayne was opening herself up, desperate to find an answer, "Tell me Alfred. Is it wrong of me to think that?"

Alfred took a moment to choose his words. Anything that he said now would determine the decision that she would take. So he carefully said; "It is not wrong of you to think that, ma'am. You are just thinking as a mother."

She swallowed the lump in her throat before she said; "What do you mean?"

Alfred walked closer to the table, faced her, and said; "You feel... that your biological child, the product of your love between you and Master Wayne, would not be able to forgive you if you were to take another child and claim it as your own. You do not want him, or her, to hate you.

"It is not a wrong thing Mrs. Wayne. You are merely being considerate. Even... when you don't have to."

Martha slightly relaxed, but she still wasn't fully assured. And Alfred continued, "If I may, Mrs. Wayne, I think that in this situation... one must realize that it's better to not cling to what we cannot change."

At this, Martha began to see where Alfred was going, "...But it's hard, Alfred. And frightening."

"But it is something that all of us must do at the lowest point of our lives, Mrs. Wayne. Frightening as it might be, we must endure. Endure the pain and agony. And face life once again with our heads held high and our chest puffed out. Daring it to bring us down again..." then he finished it with; "And prove to it that we will never again, fall."

Martha's expression brightened, and her smile looked more genuine this time.

And Alfred added, "And know... that you shan't be alone in this. Master Wayne will always be at your side. Along with me."

Thomas' wife began to cry, not out of sadness, but out of happiness after what Alfred said, she extended her hands into one of his, grasped it tightly and say; "Thank you Alfred."

Alfred merely reciprocated her smile with his own, used his other hand to tighten his grasp in a gesture of assurance, and nodded, feeling no need to speak to convey his delight.

* * *

Outside of Earth's atmosphere, a foreign object began to enter the planet's orbit in a fast but controlled trajectory.

It was a ship. Made out of metal that the humans would not find on their planet, and is both created and engineered by an advanced alien race with technological level that exceeded that which the humans had at the current time.

It was made out of silver-shaded metal. The structure of the ship consisted of a container, an engine, and a thruster. The ship's single thruster is located on its back, with the engine located in the middle,. And in the front side of the ship, a ball-shaped container with an alien symbol engraved right in its dull tip.

To the alien race, the engraved symbol means 'Hope'.

To the eyes of humans, they would look at it, and say that it looked like a gaudily written 'S' in a pentagon-shaped crest...

* * *

"I'm glad we have this talk Alfred."

"I'm always here to help, Mrs. Wayne." Alfred replied.

Martha let go of his hand and after a few minutes of comfortable silence, she said; "Well... Alfred, about that tea... I would like a cup please. Black tea, two teaspoons of sugar. As usual." she requested with a brighter, more honest-looking smile.

Alfred nodded and began to make his way towards the manor to do as he's ordered.

However, when both of them heard a faint noise, coming from the sky, similar to the sound of burning engine, and it's getting louder and louder with every second, both of them stopped their respective activities to turn their heads upward in an attempt to see the source of the sound.

"Alfred... what is that?" Martha asked, curious about what could create such a noise as its increase in volume also indicated that it's getting closer towards their location.

"I do not know Mrs. Wayne." Alfred said at first, before he focused his hearing and after he determined the location, he briskly walked towards the front side of the Manor through the interior to save time.

When he opened that door and tilted his head slightly upwards, Alfred saw something descending upon the Wayne Manor.

Despite the panic that began to set in, Alfred managed to deduce the trajectory of the falling object, and predicted that though it would not hit the Manor, it would slightly graze the roof and fall upon the grounds in the back.

He ran towards Martha Wayne out of instinct. Despite the fact that his body was not as good as when he was at his physical prime, he managed to get to her before the object managed to graze the roof.

"Mrs. Wayne, do not go near the roof!"

Before Martha could say anything further or oblige to his sudden warning, The object hit the edge of the roof near Martha, sending some debris to where she stood, and Alfred once again sprinted towards her and protected her from the falling debris by embracing her, effectively shielding her with his body.

Luckily for both of them, the amount of debris was not something that could cause an injury, whether major nor minor.

Alfred just had the back of his suit dirtied a bit, and Martha did not suffer from any wounds nor bruises. Though the condition of a small part of the Manor's roof needed to be looked at and repaired, it was a minor issue that could easily be solved.

When he's certain that everything had calmed down, Alfred looked upon the green field and saw that the object had landed in there, destroyed some parts of the ground in the process of its descent and violently chopped off a tree along the way.

The butler was uncertain as to _what _the object was, exactly. Its shape reminded him of a rocket, and judging by the smoking thrusters, it would seem that his assumption was right, but due to how it looked, he could not say what the object was with full conviction.

"What is that thing?" Martha uttered out, awed and slightly frightened by it.

"I do not know Mrs. Wayne."

Her curiosity triumphed over her fear, she began to walk towards the rocket. Alfred then warned her, "Mrs. Wayne, I do not think that it's a good idea."

Martha looked at Alfred and said; "It landed in our backyard Alfred, I have to at least know what it is." she reasoned, "But if you're worried about me, come along. Because I'm not stopping."

And so she walked down the stone stairs, with Alfred following not that far behind, fully intent on protecting Martha from any potential harm.

The woman was suddenly filled with vigor as she descended to the massive fallen object. Her curiosity was more than simply piqued, it was now burning, filling her with the desire to see and know what the object really was.

When she was close to the object, she grazed it slightly, to check whether or not it was dangerous for her to touch. And when it did nothing, she allowed her hand to linger a moment longer.

"How fascinating..." Martha uttered out, her previous fear was long gone and replaced with unbridled curiosity. Never before had she seen this kind of construct in her life, and it came down from the sky as if a sign from the heavens.

Though considering that it didn't look so much as heavenly as it looked more alien-like, Martha quelled that thought down into nothingness. Her mind began to assume what this object was, and whether or not it was, dare she say it, destiny, for it to fall here, in the back of her home.

She then began to make her way towards the tip of the object. The moment she saw the engraved symbol inscribed upon the object, she wondered about the meaning of it.

S? What's the meaning of the S? What did it stand for? An abbreviation? Or perhaps a language that just happened to look like the Latin alphabet letter of 'S'?

"What do you think it means Alfred?" she asked her butler.

Alfred looked upon the symbol before he responded with; "I do not know ma'am. But what I do know...is that someone thinks highly of this symbol to engrave it into this... rocket ship."

Ah, so it was a rocket. A rocket ship, to be exact. Though... rockets, especially human-made rockets, did not have the share the same appearance to the one they're seeing now.

"Ma'am, perhaps it would be best if we report this finding. For all we know, this rocket might have been detected and we would-"

The rocket's domed tip then shifted slightly as it's accompanied by a hissing noise, indicating the release of pressured air. Then the sound of whirring gears became audible as the dome began to split into several parts to open and show what it contained.

The interior of the ship, while small, contained a person. A baby, newborn by how it looked, sleeping rather peacefully, as if it was not affected nor disturbed by the crash that his ship just experienced.

Martha gasped at the sight. Surprised, shocked, delighted... she was not sure of the exact emotion that she felt when she saw the baby, but perhaps, blissful happiness along with a feeling of apprehension could come close.

"My goodness, who could've put a child in this blasted contraption?" Martha said as she, unconsciously, got the baby into her arms, "He could've gotten hurt." she said as she examined the baby.

Though the baby boy squirmed slightly when she stroke his head gently, Martha was glad that the baby did not experience any physical trauma due to the crash. In fact, after a moment spent gazing at the baby, she found herself smiling blissfully.

"...He's so beautiful." she said rather affectionately in a motherly tone. "So precious."

Alfred, seeing Martha Wayne's sparkling eyes, knew that the woman had been caught in a trance. She looked so happy now, even more so than when he managed to console her.

From that, he realized that the desire to adopt this boy had surfaced from inside her. And that she would face many people who would oppose this notion with defiance. Martha Wayne was known to Thomas for her steadfastness whenever she wanted something.

The difference that she had among others who had this trait was that she knew the things that would be worth having. And she knew that those things... might not be so easily achieved.

She would fight for him, this he knew. Martha Wayne could be adamant when she wanted to, and in this circumstance, Alfred just knew that this boy that came from the sky had become something that she would protect at all cost.

"Mrs. Wayne." Alfred began, prompting Martha to turn to him, "I believe we should... remove the rocket from this place. It might attract unwanted attention if there's a guest."

She looked upon the vehicle that brought the baby that she held in her arms and said; "...But where should we put this? And how should we move it?" she asked, due to the size of the rocket.

Alfred merely smiled and said this to assure her; "You leave the method to me ma'am. And as for the location, I believe I know just the place."

* * *

The sound of a car being driven to the garage of the manor could be heard at seven p.m. at night. The said car was driven by one Thomas Wayne, who finally came back home after a grueling day at the city's hospital where he's working.

After safely parking the car at the garage, he was greeted by none other than his butler, Alfred Pennyworth. "Good evening Master Wayne." he said as he bowed slightly, "Would you care for tea? Coffee? Or perhaps something stronger?"

"A coffee would do Alfred. Black, no sugar." Thomas said as he unclothe the overcoat that he wore. "How's Martha doing?" he asked, worried over the well-being of his wife.

His concern was only intensified due to how he came home at night instead of at the late afternoon, which had become his usual time after the news that hit the couple a few months ago.

Martha Wayne, his wife, despite her strong personality that made him fall in love with her in the first place, was simply mortified at what the doctor had told them. And he had been spending every free moment that he had with her from that moment on, fully intent to bring her back to her usual vigorous self.

And so he was somewhat surprised when Alfred smiled instead of grimaced, "She's doing well sir."

"Really?" Thomas couldn't help but to say it out loud due to how surprised he was, "Wow, what did you do Alfred?"

"It was not me sir." his butler said, "It was due to someone else I'm afraid. His arrival here is... unexpected, but nevertheless, Mrs. Wayne warmed up to him quite well."

Because of the choice of his words, Thomas couldn't help but to look at him with an incredulous look on his face. And to that, Alfred merely responded with; "Your wife is waiting for you in your room Master Wayne. In the mean time, I shall prepare the coffee that you asked for."

With that, he left. Somewhat befuddled, Thomas went to the room he and his wife shared to see what it was exactly that made his wife so happy.

He opened the door leading to the master bedroom and... Saw something that he didn't expect.

His wife was there, in the bedroom, sitting on the queen-sized bed, holding a baby in her arms and treating her as if it was hers. It took her a second before he turned to Thomas, and her eyes widened in surprise for a moment before she calmed down and said; "Tom. Come here for a second."

As he walked towards his wife, he couldn't help but say; "Martha... whose baby is that?"

Martha sighed as she looked at the baby boy, she procured a tired, but blissful-looking smile before she said; "It's a long story Tom. Sit beside me. I'll tell you everything."

...

Alfred deliberately took his time to make that coffee that he was ordered to make. At the same time, he also tried to focus his hearing to try and hear the conversation that's currently happening at the master bedroom.

After the coffee was prepared, Alfred placed it on a tray, grabbed the tray, and walked towards the master bedroom.

Noticing the lack of screaming or yelling was a good sign. However, a soft-spoken, but heated argument was also a possibility, so he's still cautious.

Reaching the door to the master bedroom, he knocked it twice, "I brought your coffee, Master Wayne."

_"Come in Alfred."_

Doing as he's ordered, Alfred opened the door. And found that Thomas Wayne was looking at the baby boy with both affection and curiosity apparent in his eyes. Not wanting to ruin the couple's moment, he said; "I shall put it in the night stand, sir."

After he did so, Alfred was about to leave the bedroom before Thomas stopped him by saying; "Alfred."

He turned to him, and said; "Yes Master Wayne?"

"...Show me the ship that carried him."

* * *

The two men walked towards the large-sized shed located in the spacious backyard of the Manor. Despite the fact that his wife had told him that there was a rocket ship that crashed in the backyard, the ground seemed undisturbed. Except for that one stump, which was all that remained from a tree.

"After hearing what Martha said, I thought that there would be more... destruction." Thomas remarked.

"Oh there was sir. Not to worry however, I have cleaned it up." Alfred said, assuring him despite his slightly dismissive tone.

Thomas accepted that, and silently, they went and entered the shed. The shed was constructed out of stone, and its utility was to keep the gardening appliances, of which there were many.

Alfred went towards the seemingly inconspicuous candle-holder embedded to one of the pillars and then pulled it down, revealing it to be a disguised lever.

With that action, it opened a mechanical trap door that led to a hidden, adequately sized room beneath it. Due to the darkness of the shed's interior, Alfred turned on the light, allowing the thing contained within the secret chamber to be seen by Thomas.

The light was refracted from the silver-tinted metal from which the ship was constructed out of. The size of the ship took a large part of the space, and based by its design, it was not crafted by humans.

Thomas could only look at the ship out of awe. The alien design was not the first thing that came to his mind when he heard the word 'rocket ship', but in hindsight, he probably should've thought of that first.

"And where was the baby's place before Martha took him out?"

"Right there sir." Alfred answered as he pointed to the domed tip that's facing away from them.

Wordlessly, Thomas walked towards the spot where he would be able to see the domed tip. And once there, he saw the engraved symbol, "What does the 'S' stands for?" he asked Alfred.

"I do not know sir." Alfred answered truthfully, "It is possible that it is not an 'S', sir. It might be a symbol that only looks similar to what we know as 'S', but different in its meaning."

Thomas looked over at the design of the rocket ship and silently agreed with Alfred. The ship's design did not correlate with the typical designs of rocket ship that humanity had made, substantiating the notion of it coming from a race from another planet.

'But why was he sent away from his home?' Thomas wondered, 'What reason did his parents have to just send him off to another planet?'

The amount of answers to that question were many. None of them were pleasant to be thought about, and certainly none of them would mean that the baby would still have his biological parents.

Thomas Wayne was an idealistic man. And because of this, he believed that in every person, in every being as sentient and as intelligent, if not more compared to humans, there's a potential for them to do good. It's just that only few of them ever use that potential.

Though there's a possibility that the baby's parents were the worst kind of people that chose to send him away because they simply didn't care, seeing the rocket ship that they have used to send him off made Thomas rethink the possibility of that notion.

"Alfred, when the ship crashed, was the baby injured in anyway?"

"No he was not, sir." Alfred answered, "The ship has a mechanism that protected the baby from any harm. The crash did nothing harmful to him."

And with that, that one possibility just became an impossibility. His parents had planned this and had prepared contingency plans in case of something like a crash.

'So whatever their reason was to send him here... Was something so dire that they were desperate to send him off to another planet where he might have a bigger chance to survive...'

The realization made Thomas sympathized with the baby boy. Now, he felt that he became his responsibility along with his wife's.

And instead of feeling burdened, he felt as if he had been given an important task that he would do with all his might out of the sincerity of his heart.

He looked at Alfred and said; "Close it Alfred."

The butler did so and after the trap door was closed, Thomas turned to his butler and said; "You do understand that this will become a secret of ours."

Alfred merely nodded with a knowing smile plastered on his face, "Of course sir."

"Good." said Thomas with an approving nod, "Whoever... or whatever sent the baby here... sent him here for a purpose. And that is to save him from some kind of danger. He's an alien lifeform from another planet not unlike ours... The world could benefit from this piece of technology of their civilization, but..."

The famed surgeon sighed as he finished with; "But perhaps, we are not ready for it. Not yet."

There was a moment of silence before Alfred said; "What of the baby boy, Master Wayne?"

He looked at Alfred and said; "The baby will be with us." Thomas then smiled, "I trust you will be able to handle an alien baby, Alfred?" he asked rather cheekily.

Alfred merely smiled and replied to his rhetorical question with; "Well, there is always a first time for everything, sir."

After they understood that the baby boy would be adopted into the Wayne family, both Thomas and Alfred exited the secret chamber within the shed, then came out from the door which they came through before and locked the door once they're out.

But as they were walking towards the manor, Thomas was driven by his curiosity and asked his butler... "Say Alfred... How exactly did you move that ship and then clean up the after-effects of its crash?"

The size of that thing would suggest that it would have to be moved by a pick-up truck, which was easy enough to do, considering that they do have one. But to clean the messy crash that Martha described _and _drive a pick-up vehicle to carry that ship to the shed all by himself was a rather herculean task to accomplish.

Alfred's reply was; "Oh it was nothing too remarkable sir. I just did what was necessary to be done."

...

When Thomas went to Martha again, she's become a bit apprehensive as he entered and walked towards her. In her mind, she's wondering what Thomas had decided on what to do with the baby.

"Martha... I've decided on what I want to do with the baby boy." Thomas began the conversation, "But before I tell you, I want to hear your side first. What do _you_ want to do with him?"

She looked upon the still-sleeping baby with nothing but affection in her eyes, "...I want to take care of him, Tom." she said, "No... it's more than that... I want him to be our son." she stated with a firmer tone of voice.

Thomas could see that the arrival of the baby boy had brought back Martha's moxie. It was clear to him that Martha simply did not care that the boy was not human despite his deceptive appearance. And that she looked ready to argue with him if he were to say otherwise.

But Thomas did not want to fight her on this topic.

Because he's also thinking the same thing.

"Then I think we're on the same track Martha." Thomas said with a smile. He then wrapped his arm around her shoulder and looked at the baby boy that Martha was carrying, "We'll adopt him."

Martha sighed happily as she smiled and moved herself slightly to positively respond to his embrace, "Thank you Tom... Thank you."

Thomas tightened the embrace slightly in response. The baby boy was still calmly sleeping, even after his long journey to Earth. He knew not of what the boy would become... But he had a slight idea as to what he should grow up as.

And he would be there for him, guide him into becoming a great man that Thomas felt he's destined to be.

"If we're going to do this... then let's keep his origin a secret from everybody else, including him." Thomas said, "We'll tell him once he's old enough, but for the early years of his life, we are going to pretend that he's just like any other child, okay Martha?"

Martha looked rather reluctant at first, but after a moment of contemplation, she sighed and said; "Alright Thomas... I understand."

Thomas smiled appreciatively. "Then... we have to give him a name. Do you have any that you've already prepared for an occasion like this?"

Martha procured the brightest smile that he had ever seen from her. "Oh like you need to ask..." she softly said. Then, she told him of what the name of their child would be...

"Bruce. His name will be Bruce from now on."

Thomas approved the choice of the name, it sounded strong and firm. "Bruce Wayne... I like that."

* * *

**End of Chapter 1  
**

* * *

**A.N.: **To those of you comic book buffs, you might have heard and/or read the DC Comics Elseworlds title Superman: Speeding Bullets by J.M. DeMatteis and Eduardo Barreto. To those of you who have, you might find this story _very _familiar due to the premise.

Instead of Smallville, Kansas, the rocket ship containing the infant Kal-El landed on Wayne Manor. The very basic premise that Superman: Speeding Bullets had taken, and... in my opinion, failed to fulfill the premise's full potential.

So this is my take on the premise. This is my DC Elseworld, so to speak. Maybe it would be regarded as better than Superman: Speeding Bullets, maybe it would not. Maybe this would just be a one-shot, maybe it would not, the thing is, this idea popped into my head... And I decided to write it.

Only time will tell if another chapter of this fic will be released or not.

So with all that said, feel free to review if you find this review-worthy! If not, thank you nonetheless for spending some time reading this.

* * *

**To be continued...?**

* * *

...


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Superman nor Batman. DC owns the characters made by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster along with Bob Kane and Bill Finger, respectively.

* * *

**II. A Lesson in Fear.**

* * *

It was the inherent duty of a father to teach his children about the lessons that he or she would need in life.

Most of these lessons would undoubtedly be hard for the child to understand or accept. Such as the harsh reality of life, one of which was that the concept of 'fair justice' was not an absolute rule upheld by the universe.

That crime sometimes _does_ pay. And that not every wicked man ended up losing in the end and punished for their crimes. Nor would every decent man ended up rewarded for their deeds.

However, Thomas Wayne had been teaching his son from a very early age about the importance of character integrity.

_"No matter how cruel the world might be Bruce, one must stand by, uphold, and adhere to the values that makes one an exemplar for others to follow. Loyalty. Nobility. Courage. Honor. And above all, the willingness to do good when you are more than capable of doing so."_

Bruce Wayne, the one and only son of Thomas and Martha Wayne, grew well under such teachings that Thomas Wayne had given to him. Seven years of age still, but he was wise beyond his years and without a doubt, having a bright future ahead of him.

The boy was gifted, this was known to those who knew him. He was much more capable in learning things compared to his peers, earning him some respect along with some ire from the other students at his school.

However, despite his reputation, he was a reserved, quiet person by nature. And hence, despite the urges of his parents, he had few people of his age that he could call as his friends.

It's not that he thought of the others as inferior compared to him, but it was more about how he felt... disconnected with the rest of the world, somehow.

He felt at home with his parents and their loyal butler, Alfred. In his school, though most of his schoolmates were somewhat pleasant to be with and the teachers were quite cordial, he did not have the ability to easily connect himself with other people.

At best, he would call them acquaintance.

But, Bruce Wayne was not known for his lack of tenacity. In him, there were two natures that collide due to one of them contradicting the other.

One was his reserved personality. And the other was his tenaciously outgoing persona that only his parents and Alfred could bring out from his proverbial shell.

At times, these two sides of himself would clash with one another, creating a friction that caused him to appear awkward.

But these situations only came up whenever he's with other people that he was not that close with. Despite the fact that he had failed many attempts to connect with other people at the behest of his parents, he never gave up.

_"Failure is an inevitable part of life, Bruce. But the important thing is... You must learn from it. ...Why do we fall, Bruce?"_

_"So that we can learn how to keep ourselves up."_

And so he persevered. He kept trying to open up to other people, make friends, expand his horizon, so to speak.

And it had been rather successful. Not stellar, but it was an admirable progress, considering that he managed to make friends out of his schoolmates and able to hold a conversation with them.

But despite his progress, he still found more comfort in being with his family. Which he and his family found nothing wrong in doing.

"Alfred." said Bruce from the backseat of the car that the butler was driving in. The young Master Wayne had finished another ordinary day of school, and was currently being driven to the manor.

"Yes, Master Bruce?" Alfred responded to his call.

There was a moment of silence that seemed to be the product of Bruce wanting to compose his thoughts before saying anything. And after a minute, he ended up saying; "...What does my father expect out of me?"

Alfred looked at the rear-view mirror to look at Bruce's expression. And he found that it was not a morose, dejected expression, but more of a contemplative expression, and one that expected an answer from the experienced butler of the Wayne family.

"I appreciate what dad is doing, I'm not complaining about the things that he taught me, I like it a lot in fact." Bruce clarified in case that it was not clear, "But... I don't know, it feels like he's expecting something out of me. Which might be the reason why he's teaching me a lot of things... Do you know anything about that Alfred?"

The butler perfectly knew the reason why Thomas Wayne, his father, was keen to teach his son a lot of things that the school won't be able to. Being his father, and one of the few people who knew of his son's origin, Thomas Wayne believed that Bruce was meant to become a great man in the future.

The belief was not something that was made out of pride. It was something that Thomas knew as a great possibility. Because he knew that Bruce was different from others.

He had been exhibiting stellar physical ability and exceptional mental maturation from an early age, the cause of which was not something that was known as of yet, but was heavily implied as an influence made by his unique physiology.

Thomas, ever the doctor, hypothesized that Bruce had a physiology that reacted differently to Earth's environment and the sun that the planet's orbiting. What it was, he didn't know, but he assumed that his body absorbed the radiation from Earth's sun and convert it into some sort of energy that augmented his physical strength and durability, and along with it, improved his brain functions as well.

He also hypothesized that these augmentations would increase over time, and that due to his current age, it's very possible that he did not reach his full potential as of yet.

Thomas expected Bruce to become an exceptional man. More than anyone ever recorded in human history. And it was the reason why he taught him about things that one would not learn in school.

"Well, Master Bruce, it is obvious that your father expect you to become great." said Alfred, "He expects great things from you. And I think that's the reason why he spends his free time teaching you."

"...Why does he expect me to become great?"

"Every father expects their child to become someone greater than themselves, Master Bruce." Alfred answered Bruce's question with a general answer, "And Master Wayne is no different."

Bruce seemed to accept this answer as he went silent, possibly mulling over what Alfred had said to him, re-evaluating the things that his father had taught him, and perhaps, try to find another reason as to why his father wanted him to become great. A more specific reason.

It was a little, but somewhat complicated mind game to young Bruce Wayne. It was clear that his father loved him, and like Alfred said, he was just like other fathers that wanted to see their child grow to become something greater than themselves, but his persistence in achieving that goal was... well, the most fitting word would be 'admirable'.

But why? Why must he push himself so hard? Though 'out of love' was an acceptable reason, Bruce felt that there was something more to that.

There was a purpose to this action. Not just a reason, a purpose. An end goal, one that Thomas wanted Bruce to achieve. Though this purpose was still elusive to his knowledge, young Bruce trusted his father's judgment.

It's just his curious mind that drove him to ask these questions.

But, perhaps it was because he suspected that there was something far more complicated going on in this little conundrum.

Either way, it would be found out. In due time.

As for now...? He's looking forward to be with his parents in the manor and an afternoon snack. Alfred makes what was simply the _best_ pancake in the whole state.

* * *

What Bruce always did whenever he first came back to his house from a day at school was to go to his room, throw his bag to his bed, change his clothing from the school uniform of the private school that he's going to to a more casual set of clothing that consisted of a white t-shirt, a pair of brown shorts and a pair of black slippers.

He then went to the one of the many study rooms that the manor had, the specific one located at the east wing side of the manor, where his mother usually used due to it being the most decorated rooms in all of the manor.

Like Thomas Wayne, Martha Wayne also participated in nurturing young Bruce, except in a different way than her husband's.

If he was the one whose job was to instill goodness and a proper sense of morality into his son's mind, then Martha's job was to become a loving, caring mother for her only child. Provide him with another thing that one needed to grow into a respectable person: Love.

"Hello mom!" Bruce said rather excitedly to his mother, who was sitting on the comfortable chair that was near the unlit fireplace.

Martha's eyes sparkled with joy and she smiled as Bruce walked briskly towards her, "Bruce." she said as she opened her arms to welcome him into a hug, "Welcome back. How was your day at school, dear?"

"Well it was good like always, mom." Bruce answered, "Is dad home yet? I want to talk to him about something." Martha's son added as an afterthought.

"Well, he's not home yet dear, he has a busy day at the hospital." said Martha. Thomas had already called ahead that he would be having a longer shift at the hospital, though he also added that he would try to find a way to go home faster.

Though Bruce understood and accepted that, Martha saw a bit of disappointment on his expression. So she rubbed his head softly and said; "Be patient, Bruce. He'll be here." her voice was soothing, "But maybe you can talk with me. What do you want to talk about with your father, Bruce?"

Bruce suddenly looked apologetic as he said; "Sorry mom, but... This is something that I want dad to answer. Just him. ...I hope you don't mind." he added, as if he just did something wrong.

Martha merely smiled, knowing that Bruce did not mean anything demeaning by what he said, "It's okay. Now, while waiting for your father, why don't we have a snack? I know you're waiting for Alfred's pancake."

Her son's sheepish smile was the indication that she was right. Though it's not as if she needed any clarification.

"Hehe, I uh... I already told him to make some for me and you mom. I thought you might be hungry." said Bruce, who seemed rather embarrassed by this admission.

"Very thoughtful of you Bruce." said Martha, giving him a genuine praise with a smile. There was no need for him to feel embarrassed, considering that it's good of him to think of others. But perhaps it was because of how easy it was for her to know everything about him.

Martha then followed Bruce outside, all the while, the woman smiled at seeing her son looking so lively. Seeing him growing up was one of the most pleasant things that Martha had ever experienced. Even more so when she could see him growing up to become a good child, one that any parents would be proud of having.

And because of how good he was, Martha was a little worried about the development of the boy's body.

She knew, no matter how hard she tried to ignore it because of how impeccably _human-like _he looked, that her Bruce was not exactly human.

_"He's developing something within him, Martha. Growing up in this planet... causes something that triggers some kind of system in his body that absorbs our sun's radiation and change it into energy."_

Earth was not the planet in which he was born on, Sol was not the sun that his home planet orbited, and as such he could not be classified as a Homo sapiens. As he simply _appeared_ human, but no one could change his alien nature.

However, that did not mean that he did not deserve to be raised by a loving family. Despite his nature, Martha and Thomas considered him as a son to them. No more, no less.

Still, there was the matter of revealing it all to him. But it will all come in due time, Martha always said to herself.

There's no secret that could be kept hidden forever. No matter how good one might hid it.

* * *

It was somewhat late in the afternoon when Bruce ran out of the manor dressed in casual t-shirt and shorts towards the backyard of the manor, as if eager to explore the extensive range of the land that the Wayne family owned.

"Bruce, don't go too far now!" was the voice of Martha warning him.

"Okay mom!" Bruce replied back with another shout as he continued to run. Exploring. One of many of his favorite pastimes that he always did whenever he's at his house or at school when it was recess time.

While doing it during the latter did not always satisfy him, doing it at the former would always do the trick of getting his spirits up.

To calm the mind, he would always take time to read a book in a relatively silent, comfortable environment and Alfred's impeccable cooking. But to keep himself invigorated, he liked to be physically active, and exploring his surroundings was something that he really loved to do.

It was not to serve a purpose or to find a lost artifact buried deep within the backyard of the manor, it was just to satisfy his spiritual hunger for an invigoration. Never mind the fact that he had practically done this dozens of times that the layout of the manor and its surroundings became so ingrained on his brain, it was always nice to go outside and enjoy the peaceful serenity of the surroundings of the manor...

By traversing through the fields and the trees and many other things within the yard to go to something that caught his fancy for the moment before moving to another.

Today, like any other day, he planned to traverse the forest and see where his feet would take him.

One time during this little activity, he ended up on the edge of a small cliff with a waterfall that went down to a small river. One of his best moments if he had to say so himself, considering that he did not plan a route and ended up finding something that he spent a few hours staring.

Getting lost was always a large possibility. The first time he was lost, he narrowly escaped the fate of stranded in the forest for the rest of the night when Alfred found him with the aid of a tracking dog that he had to borrow.

Its name was Ace. A Great Dane with black fur, which Bruce took a quick liking to, and it was to no surprise that Ace was adopted as per the order that Thomas and Martha commissioned.

"Come on Ace, let's go on an adventure!"

The Great Dane ran alongside him and barked at his statement, as if it shared Bruce's predisposition towards repeated exploration. It's possible that the dog liked to be active as well. And considering what Bruce was doing, it could be the very reason why Ace seemed so vibrant.

...

The sun was on its way to settle down on the horizon when Bruce and Ace began to walk back towards the manor, already looking rather tired, but nevertheless, they were as vibrant as they were when they started. Maybe even more so.

Bruce was smiling as he walked, and Ace was panting with its tongue being put out, looking as if it's happy after the impromptu adventure that they had gone through.

Once again, it was a satisfying conclusion for the day. True, there weren't anything as interesting as finding himself on top of a small cliff, but nevertheless, he felt himself renewed, if one would forgive the slight hyperbole.

The pair went on their merry way towards the manor without any kind of one-way talk going on between them. It appeared to be a normal late afternoon after a relatively normal day as Bruce was planning to take a bath and then have some quick read before joining his parents for dinner...

Until he heard an unfamiliar noise reaching to his ears.

His initial reaction was to frown and stop on his tracks. The sudden action made Ace stop as well, it looked at Bruce, confused as to why he decided to stop so unexpectedly.

The noise came... and then it went away. But Bruce was sure that he did not imagine that sound, so he decided to wait and focus his hearing a little bit more just in case that he did hear that sound.

After exactly three seconds, the sound came again, rustling noises, as if it were the sounds that were made by a large group of animals huddling together in close proximity.

It was somewhat muffled, which made Bruce think that the sound came from an interior of something, most likely a natural formation, such as a...

"A cave..." Bruce uttered.

His curiosity piqued and his heart set, Bruce turned to Ace and said, "Come on boy, follow me."

The dog barked, as if agreeing to his order. And the pair walked towards the source of the sound that the boy heard, with dedication evident in his eyes and a pleased smile on his lips, he marched with his loyal companion into what he regarded as a mystery that must be solved.

Their march brought them to a stone well, one ravaged by time and covered in vines. The well was a part of the Wayne Manor, except one that was located quite far away from the manor itself, and probably one of the things that was installed when the manor was first created.

Bruce had seen this well a couple of times, but it never caught his attention until now. The muffled noises came from the bottom of the well, Bruce deduced, "This well must be connected to a cave formation..." Bruce muttered.

He then took a slight peek, to see what lied at the bottom of the well. And found out that even though it was quite dark, there was nothing besides vines that's contained within the well itself, not even a slight amount of water down at the bottom.

As the muffled noise became clearer, Bruce leaned his head to the interior of the well in an attempt to determine the location of the source of the noise and to see what lies on the bottom of the well.

The next thing that Bruce heard however, was not the rustling noises. Instead, it was the sound of Ace barking loudly as if it were worried. Then came the disorienting feeling caused by his body falling down.

Bruce didn't even have the time to scream as his body quickly fell down and crashed into the bottom of the well.

The young man felt pain when he landed into the the hard concrete down below with his back being the part of his body that cushioned his landing. He groaned as he clenched his eyes shut to try to lessen the pain somewhat.

He heard Ace barking got louder and louder, as if the dog were desperate. Bruce looked up, saw the Great Dane looking down to him from the hole and kept on barking. Bruce fought the stinging pain on his back and managed to issue an order to Ace, his only hope of getting out of the mess that he had unwittingly put himself into.

"Ace...! Go find mom and Alfred...!" Bruce spoke as loud as he could, ignoring the pain in his back, "Bring them here...! Go!"

The Great Dane didn't respond the way that Bruce had hoped, but he then said; "Go!", once more, and with that, the Great Dane left in a hurry, leaving Bruce alone at the well.

Bruce lied there for a minute or so until the pain subsided. Which was surprisingly quick, considering that it was his back that was the first thing that hit the concrete with enough force to paralyze him for life.

When Bruce sat up, he rubbed the place where his spinal cord was, and realized that while it still stung a bit to touch them, the injury from the fall was not lethal... At least, not as it should've been.

"Hm... that's... that's weird." Bruce muttered in a combination of shock and disbelief. He was very befuddled at the fact that he was still able to move his body after falling into a well that was at least twenty-foot high from its hole to bottom.

He looked up, towards the well's hole, and he felt constrained. Due to the tight space that Bruce was not used to, he felt quite uneasy and hoped that rescue would come as soon as possible.

He waited for what seemed like five minutes or so... until that rustling noise that led him there was heard once more.

It was so clear to his ears now. And he's so close to it that he could determine its exact location. Bruce looked to his right, and saw that there was a crack right beside him, a cracked wall that was quite large that an adult person could fit into it.

Beyond the cracked wall lied darkness. And from this darkness, came the rustling noises that Bruce had been following.

His curiosity piqued once again, Bruce opted to move forward into the darkness, despite the fact that he had nothing that could aid him if he were lost.

The walls were narrow, damp, and rocky, indicating that Bruce was in a natural formation, a cave, instead of a man-made construct. Bruce, while above average in body size compared to his peers, was small enough to go through the narrow path without any major troubles.

When he finally got out, the first thing he noticed was the sound of a waterfall. Bruce looked towards the thundering noise of a large amount of water falling down, and thanks to the light that came from the outside that pierced through the wall of water, he saw that there was a large opening that led directly to the stream of falling water.

Bruce felt awed and giddy at what he had discovered. A natural cave formation beneath the manor, who would've thought it? A day of exploration that had turned just like that day when he discovered that...

'Wait a... could this be the same waterfall that I found?' Bruce thought, thinking of the possibility that he was on that same cliff that he found, except he's now on a different perspective to look at things.

His pain and the impossibility of his well-being forgotten for a moment, Bruce took his time in savoring the cave that he found beneath his home, though dark, dank, and quite chilly, it was amazing that such a thing existed beneath the grounds of the manor.

Looking towards the darkness, Bruce felt that what he could see now was just a small part of the cave. And that if he were to explore it, he would need at least a flashlight.

He was about to turn back to the well after a few moments of relishing the cave and wait for the rescue to arrive... Until something stopped him.

The darkness suddenly became clearer to see, something that would normally happen to human eyes when they got accustomed to a dark environment, but never at such a speed.

Nor was it ever that clear either. Despite the fact that the only source of light was the rays of the setting sun that were dimmed by the wall of water, Bruce realized that he could see the surroundings of the cave very well.

Then the rustling noises returned in full force. Amplified even, due to the fact that he was very close to the source of the sound.

He looked up, and thanks to his sudden improved vision, he saw numerous numbers of bats, hanging down from the cave's ceiling. The rustling noises was then accompanied by the shrill sound that was produced by their throats, and with that, the cacophony began.

The nearly thunderous cacophony was then followed by a massive exodus of the bats. They came swooping down from where they were hanging and went down towards Bruce.

At first, there was only few, but in mere moments, the number increased and increased until there were hundreds of them that were surrounding him at once, enveloping him in a small spiral column filled with the terrifying, flying bats.

Bruce was locked in place. Rather afraid at the event that had unfolded. The sounds of their beating wings and shrill noise were like drums to his ears, causing an auditory overload that made his head numb.

As the creatures of the night surrounded him, Bruce Wayne felt that familiar feeling. One that he experienced back then, when he happened to be alone inside the dark manor which happened to be empty in the middle of the night.

Fear. The dreadful feeling encroached him until he's rendered immobile and incapable of coherent thought.

The overloading of his auditory senses consumed him, and for a moment, he thought that he would not be able to escape...

That was until the moment when he heard another sound. The clicking noises followed by a bright luminescent light from a glow stick that was thrown that made the flying rodents divert their course of flight.

Then he saw his father, frantically beckoning him to come to him out of concern, "Come on Bruce! This way!"

And thus, he was rescued.

* * *

"Are you sure that he's fine Thomas?" Martha asked out of worry as Thomas finished examining Bruce for any injuries or bruises of any kind.

"Physically speaking, he's fine. He's not injured, bruised, cut up, nothing of the sort." Thomas answered with relief apparent in his voice, "However... it was lucky I was at home when Alfred was about to get the tools to get down to the well."

Ace was quite quick to reach Alfred and Martha, when they noticed the dog's frantic barks and that their son was not being accompanied by it, they immediately caught on to why the dog was there.

The Great Dane took them to the well. And despite the fact that it was empty when they looked at it, Alfred immediately returned to the manor to gather some tools to go down the well while Martha waited there and tried to call Bruce from the hole to no avail.

Martha forgo the desire to reprimand her son in favor of letting Thomas treat the boy who seemed to be traumatized by what happened. And she was relieved when her husband told her that he was not injured physically.

"But he still looks so scared... What happened down there?" she asked after seeing her son's eyes that seemed unfocused, as if he had experienced something that shook him quite terribly.

"He was... surrounded by bats when I found him." Thomas began, "They were swirling around him like a cyclone, you know? Maybe because he made a noise or something or other, but they reacted and surrounded him."

Martha was never one that was fascinated nor endeared the creature that could be described as flying rodents. She knew that the experience would be somewhat traumatizing, especially to a child as young as Bruce, and so her concern deepened.

A small noise made by the door being opened made them turn into the room and they saw Ace, the Great Dane, coming to him and began to lick Bruce's face. And slowly, a smile came to the young boy's face as he responded by gently petting the dog's head and hugging him.

"Still..." Thomas added with a smile, "I think he'll be just fine."

After a moment of relief in which she saw her little boy regaining that happy, blissful expression once again, she turned to look at the bottom of the stairs from which the dog came from.

What she saw was Alfred, who smiled and looked back before he nodded, as if he knew what had transpired.

Probably initiated it as well too. Martha could not be more grateful for Alfred's presence in this family. The man was, simply put, a godsend.

Turning to Thomas, she was reminded of something that Bruce told her from before, "Oh yes, Tom?"

"Yes Martha?" he asked as he turned to face her.

"Bruce said that he wanted to speak with you when he came back from school." she answered, "It seems important, considering that he only wanted to speak to you instead of me."

Thomas smiled and nodded, "Alright then."

With that, her husband entered Bruce's room, and considering how Bruce wanted to only to speak to his father, she thought that it would be rather invasive of her, and so she decided to give the man and the boy sometime alone and went downstairs.

...

"Hey there young man." Thomas greeted Bruce, who had let Ace sit on its stomach on his lap. "Are you scared still?" he asked his son.

Bruce slowly shook his head, "...No. I don't think so at least." he replied back, "I'm alright for now." he added to give a little more certainty to his previous statement.

"Hey, it's alright to be scared sometimes, you know." Bruce's father said, "It's a normal response. Whenever we are cornered or got ourselves into trouble or confronting something that our brains interpret as dangerous, we become afraid. And there's nothing wrong in being afraid."

Bruce was a little bit assured at that. Then Thomas added one more thing, "However... While being afraid is acceptable, Bruce... Never let that control you. Do you know what fear can create?"

Genuinely curious, Bruce asked, "What?"

"Fear can bring out the worst of us." answered Thomas, "It is one thing to be afraid of something... But to be governed by the feeling of being afraid is another thing entirely. It brings out our own personal demons within ourselves."

This was one of the moments in which Thomas lectured Bruce on important things that would not even be understood by a normal seven years old, let alone be interested in.

However, Bruce was not one who would pay no attention to such speeches, especially from his father's.

"However, fear can also be used as a tool. Mostly it's a tool for control. Unethical, but nevertheless effective." Thomas said before he cleared his throat, knowing that if the topic veered into utilizing fear as a tool, it would go off the rails, so to speak.

"Anyway, the most important thing is that to acknowledge it is normal, an involuntary reaction to something surreal, endangering, grim... and to know that fear itself is nothing more than the product of our own minds, and therefore, it can be overcome with effort."

Bruce smiled as he said, "So there's no need for me to be afraid of bats, dad?"

"Of course not." Thomas said in a way that sounded like an assurance instead of a dismissal, "In fact... let me tell you a little bit of secret, Bruce... The bats did what they did because they are also afraid of you."

The young man was somewhat caught off-guard by this statement, but Thomas explained further, "Every living creature feels fear. The bats surrounded you like that because they were afraid of you and wanted to retaliate."

"But... if they're scared of me, why didn't they just... flee?"

"Because they know their numbers are great." answered Thomas, "Fear, once spreads into a group, will always bring out the worst of each individual within their group... And they react accordingly because of the feeling of control and power made by the simple fact that they are among those who feel the same way as they do."

This got Bruce into thinking, and so he asked his father, "Do we... I mean, we, humans... Do we have that feeling too? Not fear, but... the feeling of... um..."

"Empowerment?" Thomas helped push his mind further.

"Yes, that. You said to me once that outside of our advanced intelligence, we are not that much different from any animals in the world, right?" he asked.

"Right." Thomas said, wanting Bruce to continue with this train of thought.

"Well, do we have that feeling as well? When we're in a large group, we would do whatever the group is doing simply because we... identify ourselves with them. Even if what they're doing is wrong." Bruce began, "You said fear can bring out the worst out of us, right? So like the bats... could we also act as if we have the higher ground just because we are among the people who feel the same way as we do?"

Thomas nodded, "Yes. Despite what humans always boast about ourselves, we are not so advanced that we can suppress some of our instincts. And what you said has happened in some parts of the world, Bruce. Groups that uphold terrible values and suppress others and spread fear to those who don't agree with them."

Thanks to his father, Bruce had an idea of how bad some people could be. He also taught him that there were some that became bad and there were some that was born bad, however, he also taught him that none was beyond redemption.

At least, that was what he believed.

"However... It is important that we have a firm principle." Thomas stated firmly, "A principle that I, as an individual, am my own person. That _I_ am the one who decide what's right and what's wrong according to _me_, and not impose it with others. And that _I_ am not defined by any group or faction that I have joined through my heritage or out of my own volition."

He then grasped Bruce's shoulder and said, "You are Bruce Wayne. A unique person with unique personality and traits, a distinct individual, like many others. Don't let anyone tell you any different or what you should be just because of their expectations."

"...But..." Bruce said after a moment, "You expect me to become something too, don't you dad?" he asked not in an accusing way, but just like how someone pointing out something that he noticed from another.

Thomas blinked before he smiled and said, "Yes, I do. However... I'm not going to push you to become what I want for you. I am content of just teaching you things that you would need in the future. What you will become is up to you."

His father then added, "And I know that whatever you chooses to become, you will make me proud."

He always knew what to say. To Bruce's eyes, his father was one of the most decent, and upstanding man in the world. Which wouldn't be that far off, considering, but to Bruce, he was more than just a father.

He was his very first teacher. The one who fulfilled his duty as a father and done more than just giving him a well-adjusted life, but also giving him what a child needed the most; the care, adoration, and love that he and Martha gave to him.

"Now..." Thomas said after a moment of tender silence, "Your mother told me that you want to talk to me about something. What is it?"

Bruce opened his mouth for a moment before he closed it again. A second later he said, "...You know what dad? Nevermind. It's... it's alright."

Thomas was worried by his sudden retraction, and so he said, "Are you okay Bruce? What is it? You can tell me anything."

"No no, it's just that... with what you've told me... I think I don't need that little talk anymore. Still, thanks dad."

Though Thomas was still somewhat confused, but he's nevertheless glad that whatever his problem was it seemed that it was solved through his previous talk. "Well then, I'm glad to be of help, son."

* * *

...

* * *

Bruce had learned long ago that not everyone was as good and kind as they were capable to be.

His father had taught him that some people did bad things due to their nature, the way they were brought up, or a combination between the two factors.

Then there were bullies. These people belittled others simply because they're able and much stronger than those they bullied, a real piece of work, coming from many different flavors and ages.

In his class, there was one such person. A bully that acted tough and in power of the school simply because of his large stature and his capability to dish out his strength to those who dared speak out against him or did not do as he told them to.

Bruce was appalled at his way of thinking of might makes right. More so to his followers that followed him simply because of his physique and egotistical thinking.

The feeling of empowerment simply because of joining a like-minded leader and its group. Bruce realized that he had been seeing the real-life example of what his father recently taught him for quite awhile now.

He wanted to retaliate, but to throw the first punch would be wrong of him. More so than that, he was not sure as to what he should do, talking him out of his way was something that he considered, but knowing the boy's proclivity to do despicable things just because he could, he did not take that notion more seriously.

Should he show him the taste of his own medicine then? To humiliate if not retaliate to his physical and psychological bullying to those who simply looked weak enough to appear as fresh meats for him to pound on so that they became soft?

He did not think that would be the answer. But after what he had experienced in the cave and what his father had told him, he knew what he could do.

He must place fear into him. His father said that fear, while unethical, is an effective form of control. Perhaps he did not fear the reprimanding of the teachers who caught him once or twice because he knew that as long he did not get caught, he could still bully others as he pleased.

But, if fear was applied to his heart, then he might be slightly dissuaded from doing so.

Carefully planning a method of approach, Bruce followed him from afar as he and his cronies were bringing a weak-looking boy towards the boys bathroom during recess.

When they closed the bathroom door, Bruce stood a few feet away from it for a moment, took a deep breath to prepare himself, reminding himself to follow his plan, then... he barged in.

The bully was surrounded by his boys who looked down on the boy that he was holding on from his collar as he pulled his hand back to punch his face, but he was distracted when Bruce entered, and he sneered at him, "Well well well, if it isn't mama's boy... What are you doing here, nerd?"

The boy was a type of person who would give derogatory terms out with ease, even when the reason he called them as such wasn't valid. While his mother usually came to pick him up and he would be happy to go and hug her out of impulse, it simply wasn't kind to call Bruce with demeaning words just because he loved his mother and reading books.

But Bruce remained calm, his expression filled with resolve, and with a firm voice, he said; "Stop this Bill."

Bill, with his unkempt black hair and his thick eyebrows, was somewhat surprised by Bruce's sudden arrival and demand. He remained still for a moment before he unceremoniously dropped the boy, "Uh, excuse me? I'm afraid I didn't hear you, what did you just say to me?"

"I think he wants you to stop, Bi-"

"Shut up idiot! I want to hear this from himself! What did you just say to me?" he challenged him as he went over to Bruce.

Bill towered over Bruce due to his height, nearly a foot higher compared to him. But Bruce remained strong as he said in an equally firm voice as before, "I want you to stop this."

The bully then chuckled before he laughed out loud, followed by his friends, amused by what Bruce said, "Look at this boys, someone wants to be a hero! Do you know what we do to a hero wannabe boys?"

"We show him that we don't take no order!"

"That's right! Now... I'm going to give you a chance, mama's boy. Leave, and I might just forget this ever happened, got it?"

He knew that he was implying a threat. But Bruce did not let fear control him, and he said to him, "I want you to stop, Bill."

"Ohoho..." Bill laughed rather menacingly as he cracked his knuckles, "Alright then, you want to play this game, alright... Now, I'm going to warn you one more time, and there won't be a third, because then you'll be my punching bag... Get. The hell. Out. Understand me, nerd?"

Bruce merely looked at his eyes, and said; "Stop this."

"...Alright then. If you wanna get beat up that bad, you're going to get beat up." Bill said as he pulled his hand back.

He struck, but Bruce avoided his punch by stepping to the side. He then grabbed Bill's shoulders and pushed him down to his knees, the sound of bones smashing to the ceramic tile of the bathroom floor echoed, and Bill's friends, who had been smiling, were shocked as Bill groaned at the pain that began to sting on his knees.

Having his head on the level of Bruce's chest, he now loomed over Bill, and he then said to him, "I want you to stop."

Bill grunted as he tried to push Bruce out of the way, but he found the resistance to be much more formidable than his strength. Multiple times he tried, and all of them were rebuffed.

"Bill." Bruce said to him again, "I want you to stop."

"You don't get to order me, nerd!" Bill yelled out as he tried, to no avail, to get himself out of his surprisingly firm grasp.

He then kept his hold over him in silence, after a minute, Bill began to look at him in the eye and said; "You'll get your turn for this, I swear!"

Bruce merely kept eye contact, not speaking a word, keeping his expression hardened.

"I'll punch you until your mother can't even recognize you anymore! Your face is going to be all black and blue, you understand? You're going to get hurt pretty boy!"

Bruce merely held his gaze.

"Look, I'll really hurt you! More than I ever did to the others, I swear! You're going to be my personal punching bag!"

There was no other response other than his glare.

"Y-you're going to be so dead! You hear me?!"

The silence that came from the lack of a verbal response from Bruce was deafening.

"L-let me go damn it! M-my knees are hurting!"

Bruce kept his hands firm and steady on his shoulders.

"G-gaaah...!"

Despite Bill's groaning during his once again failed attempt to break free of his grasp, Bruce did not yield nor budge from his ground.

Bill began to pant as he tried and tried and tried to break free, with each attempt, his spirit progressively diminished as he tire himself out.

Bill tired to catch his breath after an extensive amount of time of him attempting to break free. At that moment, Bruce squeezed his shoulders a little hard to earn his attention. Their eyes meet once again and he said; "I want you to stop."

To Bill's eyes, Bruce became a figure deserved to be feared. It was merely an idea, a notion that he _could _hurt him, but sometimes, an idea or a notion can be far more afflicting than the act itself.

Bill's lips quivered as his eyes began to tear up, his spirit broken, his physical strength weakened, pain shooting up from where Bruce held his shoulders, and with this, fear conquered his very being.

"O-okay..." Billsaid faintly.

"There will be no more bullying." Bruce said.

"Okay..."

"No more harassing."

"Okay..."

"No matter how weak or funny someone might look, or whatever it is that you would find amusing from them, you will never excessively make fun or bully anyone ever again, understand?"

"Y-yes."

"Do. You. Understand?"

"Yes!"

"Promise me."

"I-I promise!"

"Promise!"

"I promise!"

"_Swear _to me!"

"I swear!"

**"Swear!"**

"I sweeeaaar!"

At this moment, Bill felt so weak, even his parents never got him so scared that he was crying. Never before had he felt so worthless and useless that he just wanted to cry quietly in a corner.

Afterwards, Bruce helped him stand, and he patted his shoulder. With that, Bill ran out of the bathroom, crying all the way as many of his schoolmates watched.

Bruce turned to his friend, and with a simple act of approaching them slowly, they immediately dispersed and ran out of the bathroom, leaving Bruce and the weak-looking boy alone.

After they were gone, Bruce took a sharp intake of air before letting them all out in one go. He managed to play out his plan perfectly, and he hoped that Bill would never again bully anyone.

His plan was rather simple really. He needed to show Bill that there was someone who would not fear him. Then, he would intimidate him by exerting all of his strength to pin him down and deepen his voice and add a little guttural quality to it while not backing down from his gaze. It was similar to extortion or mugging, but instead of demanding money or something valuable, he demanded him to change his ways.

In a way, he gave him a taste of his own medicine. Bruce could only hope that it would work.

Reminded of where he was, he turned to the boy with his strawberry-blonde hair that Bill had brought to be beaten up. The boy looked at him in awe, and Bruce extended his hand to him to help him up.

The boy took it, and after he stood, he said to Bruce, "...You're amazing.", his voice filled with awe and reverence.

Bruce smiled sheepishly and said, "No I wasn't... I'm just glad my plan worked out. Though I might've gone a little overboard, I didn't even know that I'm that strong... Never mind that, are you okay?" he asked out of concern.

"I was only hurt a little bit. It was no big deal, I... I'm used to being bullied all the time."

Bruce then placed his hand on his shoulder and said; "At least you don't have to worry about Bill now. Just... don't egg him on or something." he added.

The boy smiled as he said, "Don't worry, I know to leave well enough alone."

Bruce nodded before he extended his hand again, "My name's Bruce Wayne. What's yours?"

"Thomas Elliott." he answered, extending his hand to meet Bruce's.

"Glad to know you Thomas." he said as he shook his hand.

"So am I." Thomas said as he reciprocated the gesture.

* * *

When Bruce was picked up by Alfred later in the day, the butler noticed that he was happy. Certainly, he was not overflowing with happiness, beaming uncontrollably nor smiling rather exaggeratedly, but he could tell by how his eyes seemed to shine.

"You seem rather happy, Master Bruce."

At this, Bruce smiled and he said to the butler, "I am, actually." he answered rather succinctly but with a slightly bashful tone to it.

"Might I ask the reason, sir?" Alfred asked, not out of curiosity, but for the sake of knowing an explanation, or reason as to why he seemed so pleased with himself.

After a moment, the young master answered him, "I helped someone today, Alfred."

Never had he feel so fulfilled and satisfied in his life. Nothing could come close to what he felt at that moment.

* * *

**To be continued...**

* * *

So as per the requests from many of you, here is the second chapter of The Dark Knight, Son of Krypton.

Here, you can see the different duties of Thomas and Martha as parents, and the sides of both Batman and Superman within this story's Bruce Wayne(Kal-El), such as the investigative, curious, and daring Boy Scout of the classic incarnation of Superman and the fear incarnate that is Batman in its early stage. There are also some cameos, just a little bit, and not really that important. (Well, the last cameo might probably be important, who knows?)

Hope you guys enjoyed it.


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